~Raife’s POV~

I stood in front of the mirror glancing over my most expensive clothing in which I put on for today. It was the wedding suit I wore the day Christine and I got wed. Lucky to find it not ripped at any seem I put it on and sighed, today was going to be rough.

It was Paula’s fault because Chris would never try and take my daughter away from me. She knew how much that little girl really meant to me. I knew that I would be worse off if it wasn’t for her but after being in jail for a few days it was going to be a while before she came back over. This was fine by me as I wanted to clean my act up before seeing her again but after today I’m not so sure I will see her again.

“Should have done what I said,” Eli slouched on my couch swallowing another gulp of beer as his blurry eyes focused on me. He was staring here since he was kicked out of the half way house and I would have said no if Ashley was coming over but I know that won’t be for a while so thought it would be safe.

“What are you slurring about?”

He chuckled at this tipping the top of his beer bottle at me, “Taking that blonde bitches kid. Teach her a lesson,”

“What lesson is that?”

Eli leaned back on the couch, “No one messes with your kid.”

Shaking my head I stared up at the ceiling thinking about his words. One thing about him was he could hold a great conversation with high or drunk and right now he was both. Licking my lips I dropped my graze back down to him, “She’s their kid too.”

Eli threw his hands up standing up a bit wobbly, “Call me when you man up.”

He stumbled into the back room slamming the door and probably passing out on the couch. Sighing I walked to my beat up old car and drove to the court house an hour away from my apartment.

*          *          *          *

The building was large but than again it had to be for all the court rooms, jail holding rooms and the other assortment of rooms located in it. I was sitting in a hard wooden chair inside the court room where Judge Jenkins-Harlot presides, waiting for this trail to begin. My lawyer which was court appointed due to my lack of funds kept patting my back, I wasn’t sure if I was trying to comfort me or to say he was sorry for losing in advanced but what ever it was it annoyed me to know end.